Venice installs temporary glass barriers at St Mark’s Basilica to prevent flooding

2022-12-05T11:22:00-05:00

New glass barriers have successfully prevented a high tide from flooding St Mark’s Basilica in Venice for the first time [...] The wall is intended as a temporary solution until work will be carried out to raise the pavement level of St Mark’s Square. Writing on Twitter, tourism councillor Simone Venturini praised the structure and added, 'Now it’s time to accelerate the completion of the MOSE works for definite safety of the square.'

The barriers were enacted after emergency planning officials decided on not to raise the city’s brightly colored MOSE system for aqua alta events under 120cm, leaving the square and Basilica, technically the lowest point in Venice, out to dry at just 64cm (24 inches) above sea level. Mario Piana, the Proto for St. Mark's, is credited with the design of the barriers.

Near-record flooding last month provided an early successful test for both systems, preventing a repeat of the November 2019 near-catastrophe that aged parts of the building “20 years in a day” according to Carlo Alberto Tesserin, the official in charge of historic preservation for the Basilica’s Procuratoria governing body.

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Venice installs temporary glass barriers at St Mark’s Basilica to prevent flooding